Guardian of the Mountain
by Casa Circe
Summary: When a dragon is slain, another must take his place. Alternative ending to "Leminkaiya."
1. Chapter 1

_Guardian of the Mountain_

Disclaimer: I do not own either "The Hobbit" or "Avatar: The Last Airbender" but the wonderful lady firebender in the story is my precious.

NOTE: As mentioned in the final chapter of "Leminkaiya", this is an alternate ending. The idea came to me after watching the BOFA trailer and I just could not let it go without writing it because it was too much fun to explore. So this picks up a little after Ainara defeats Smaug and it will only be a three-part story. I will post the following chapters in the next few days. Hope you like it and do let me know what you think!

**PART I**

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"Thorin, you must come quickly!" Bilbo pleaded, running into the treasury.

Taken aback by the hobbit's desperate tone, the dwarf king turned to him with concern. The vast riches of the mountain had begun to absorb his interest but the unexpected interruption broke his concentration.

"What's the matter?" Thorin asked worriedly.

"It's Ainara," the hobbit explained, "she's ill, very ill!"

Together they rushed to the side of the ailing firebender who was being tended to by Oin and Bofur while the other dwarves milled about her anxiously. She was being held in one of the few rooms in the mountain that was relatively clean and safe.

A makeshift bed had been set up and she lay there in agony. Her skin had grown deathly pale and she was running a high fever. She thrashed violently from intense pain that none of them knew how to ease. She seemed unaware of her surroundings.

"It hurts, it hurts," the firebender muttered in tears, "help me. Help me."

None of her recent wounds seemed to have reopened and there were no new injuries visible. Whatever tormented her came from within and the dwarves could but watch helplessly as her condition deteriorated.

"I don't understand," Bilbo lamented, as he knelt by his friend's side, "she was perfectly fine when we left Lake-town. She even seemed in high spirits."

"How long has this been going on?" Thorin demanded, joining Bilbo at the warrior's side.

"It started the moment we re-entered the mountain," Oin explained, "something seemed to come over her when she first breathed the air here and she fainted. Moments later, she grew feverish and then she just started screaming from the pain."

"Is there nothing you can do?" Fili and Kili asked their companion but Oin shook his head sadly.

"I have never seen anything like this before," he admitted, "and it is beyond my power to help. All we can do now is try to make her as comfortable as possible and hope that this will pass."

"Perhaps this has something to do with the dragon?" Bofur suggested.

At the mention of the dragon, the firebender suddenly perked up, an almost manic look in her eyes.

"Dragon?" she cried frantically, "It was he who cursed me, I am sure of it! Even in death, he causes such pain. Everything is burning, burning, burning."

The dwarves stared at her in alarm as she rambled. But Bilbo bravely took Ainara's hand in his and whispered to her soothingly until she calmed down. She finally seemed to notice him and the others.

"Hold on," the hobbit told her gently, "you must hold on."

"You're strong," Thorin added with concern, taking her other hand, "you will conquer this."

They both held on to her for a few moments but suddenly withdrew their hands in shock and pain. For the temperature of her skin had risen so much that both Thorin and Bilbo had felt like they had been burned. But as they glanced at their hands they did not see a single mark. They were completely unharmed.

"It's an illusion," Thorin muttered, "perhaps meant to keep us away from her."

"She would never hurt us," Bilbo said.

He gave a knowing look at Thorin and the dwarf nodded. Carefully, they each took one of the firebender's hands in theirs. The pain was not so bad now that they were prepared for it and knew that it would not truly affect them.

"Please help me," she whispered feebly.

"Of course," they all replied in unison, "tell us what to do."

Ainara winced as she seemed to suffer another fit of agony and she instinctively clutched tightly at the hands of Thorin and Bilbo. Her grip was strong and slightly painful but neither of them let go this time, despite the pain which they could bear. They knew that whatever slight pain they felt by holding her was nothing in comparison to the misery she was enduring.

"Please," the firebender said at length though she began to look delirious, "please don't don't leave me."

"Never," Thorin assured her.

"We will be right here," Bilbo added.

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So the hobbit and the dwarves kept vigil over their ailing friend, staying close to her and trying everything they could to lessen her suffering. Her condition did not improve for several hours and many of them feared the worst. It was decided that some of them would go to Lake-town to ask for help but just as they were about to prepare for such a journey, a visitor arrived at the mountain.

"It's Bard!" Kili cried in recognition as the familiar figure of the bargeman stood at the small hole in the mountain.

"Bard! We must ask your help once more!" cried Bofur before Bard could say anything else.

"What is the matter?" the man asked in concern.

"Ainara is gravely ill and we are all at a loss," Fili explained, "please help us!"

Bard had come for a very different purpose but as soon as he heard what had happened, he immediately offered to help. He knew that he and the rest of his people owed their lives to the warrior who had vanquished the dragon and he was eager to be of service. He listened as the dwarves explained the situation and immediately set off to find help.

In all this, Thorin and Bilbo kept their promise to their friend and never left her side.


	2. Chapter 2

_Guardian of the Mountain_

Disclaimer: I do not own either "The Hobbit" or "Avatar: The Last Airbender" but the wonderful lady firebender in the story is my precious.

NOTE: Here's the big change and it really works well if you listen to "Dust and Light" by Twelve Titans (the BOFA trailer song) while reading. Hopefully, I do justice to what I imagined.

And hopefully it's not such a ridiculous development. After all, it has happened before in Narnia and in "Sleeping Beauty" so it's not completely far-fetched. Anyway, please do let me know what you think. The last part will be up tomorrow.

Enjoy.

**PART II**

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Ainara's condition stabilized after several hours, much to everyone's relief. Her fever went down, she stopped thrashing about wildly, and her breathing became steady at last. She was finally able to settle into a deep sleep.

Bilbo and the dwarves were grateful that she seemed out of danger and waited patiently for the help Bard had promised to bring. They trusted the man and knew that his concern for their friend was genuine but they all knew that it would take some time for him to be able to return to the mountain with whatever help he could find.

"At least she is on the mend somehow," Balin commented, looking gently at the sleeping firebender.

The other dwarves decided to leave the room so as not to disturb their friend's slumber. Only Bilbo and Thorin remained, holding true to their promise to watch over her carefully. Holding her hands no longer felt like burning and she had weakened her grip on them but they still did not let go.

"This is unjust," Thorin muttered somberly, "She does not deserve to suffer like this for ridding the world of that foul beast. Is this the price she must pay for her victory?"

"This is a wretched state of affairs indeed," the hobbit agreed, "but if there was anyone who could triumph over this adversity, it would be her."

The dwarf nodded as they continued their vigil. This unexpected circumstance had kept them so occupied that for the moment, no other thoughts could be entertained, and already this proved a better state of affairs than what would have been had the firebender not succumbed to her strange illness.

After a couple of hours of undisturbed sleep, Ainara stirred and noticed Thorin and Bilbo who had fallen asleep by her bedside. She smiled warmly at them, immensely grateful for such friendship.

But before she could utter a word, she was seized by a terrible pain, even worse than what had plagued her hours ago. She felt a surge of powerful energy such as she had never known and she knew that she would be producing a great amount of fire.

"Get away from me!" she cried in alarm, instantly waking her two tired companions.

"What's the matter?" Bilbo cried rushing to her side but Ainara pushed him away.

"Stay back!" she warned, "This is for your own safety! I must get as far from you as possible!"

"What's happening?" Thorin asked her, and then watched in horror as the warrior seemed to be consumed in flames.

"I can't control it," she replied frantically, getting off her bed and running out of the room.

Thorin and Bilbo followed her while the former cried out to the rest of the dwarves. The firebender, still engulfed in flames, fled through the narrow corridors of Erebor until she found a vast open space, the very cavern Smaug used to frequent. But unlike the dragon, she paid no attention to the mountains of gold and treasure. She clambered up these mounds so that she could distance herself from her friends.

"Stay away from me, all of you!" she shouted as she saw them following her, "I don't know what's happening but I can't control my firebending and I don't want any of you to get hurt!"

"But what can we do to help you?" Bilbo asked.

"Nothing," Ainara replied sadly, "you must simply stay away!"

She had barely uttered these last words before a shrill cry escaped her throat and she fell to her knees, still swallowed up by flames that did not seem to harm her. The warrior was in agony and her cries echoed across the mountain but the company could do nothing but watch in horror as the flames around Ainara grew larger and larger until they could no longer see their friend in the midst of the inferno.

They kept a safe distance but never took their eyes off the spectacle. None of them understood what was happening but they all refused to abandon their friend to her fate.

At length, a large, shadowy figure began to take shape in the blaze. Then, a tremendous roar echoed across the mountain and as Thorin's company watched in amazement, a dragon emerged from the flames.

They all blinked their eyes in astonishment but there could be no mistake. As the flames died down, the massive figure became more visible and to the horror of the company, there seemed to be no trace of their friend's body anywhere.

The could not believe what was happening and they were all at a loss. What had happened to Ainara? Had this great beast devoured her? Was this the accursed Smaug come back to wreak havoc once more?

The creature still had its eyes closed and seemed to be stretching its entire body, as if waking up from a long sleep. Bilbo and the dwarves immediately hid behind some nearby pillars and observed the dragon from there. Recovering from the initial shock, they got a better look at their new guest and they all concluded that this was not Smaug. Though still an impressive figure, this dragon looked different from their sworn enemy. This one was significantly sleeker and more slender than the greedy beast and inasmuch as any of them could tell, younger than Smaug. The current dragon's scales were also of a distinctively red color. Unlike Smaug, it had four legs all unconnected to its vast wings.

The creature still had not noticed their presence and though some of them felt the instinct to flee before anything untoward could happen, they could not leave without knowing what had befallen their friend. Displaying the hobbit courage that constantly surprised others, Bilbo stepped forward and addressed the beast.

"Who are you?" he demanded as confidently as he could, "And what have you done with Ainara?''

The great beast opened its eyes at last and turned to the hobbit. Bilbo saw himself reflected in two enormous golden orbs.

"Bilbo?" the dragon asked in a voice they all recognized immediately.

"What are you talking about?" Ainara asked, noticing with surprise how her voice seemed louder than usual, "I'm right here. And I am feeling so much better now."

"Ainara? You…you're," the hobbit stammered incredulously. Thorin and the rest of the dwarves had emerged from their hiding places and were now staring at the dragon in similar states of shock.

"What's the matter, my friends?" Ainara asked, puzzled by the stunned and even frightened expressions on their faces. They seemed even more shocked to see her than when she first revealed her firebending and she had hoped that she would never have to see such expressions on their faces again.

"You're looking at me in a very strange way," she remarked, "And why do you all seem so tiny, all of a sudden?"

"You don't know?" Thorin asked her softly.

"Know what?" Ainara replied, "Honestly, someone had better explain what is going on because I am so confused right now and…."

Ainara paused as she caught sight of a dragon in a large golden shield mounted on one of the walls. She gasped in horror and was about to cry out when she noticed the creature mimicking her every expression. Slowly, she looked down, from the dazed dwarves and hobbit to her own body. Gone were the hands of the firebending master, replaced by large, sharp claws. And as she moved around, she felt weight of enormous wings as well as the swish of a long, scaly tail.

"No," she whispered, though her voice still echoed across the hall, "how is this possible? I don't understand."

Seeing that even Ainara was having trouble adjusting to her new circumstances, her friends tried to reassure her.

"Please try and calm down," Bilbo said reassuringly, "I'm sure we'll find an explanation for this somehow."

But Ainara was still lost in confusion. And finding no other way to express her overwhelming emotions, the dragon took a deep breath and blew a large flame up to the ceiling of the mountain, still careful enough not to harm her friends.

She marveled at this new power. With one simple movement and very little effort, she had created more fire than she had ever been able to produce as a firebender. After the many hours of pain she endured, she not only felt invigorated but stronger than ever. And thankfully the next thing that came to her mind was that she was now better able to protect all her friends. She turned to face them and saw that they remained nervous though none of them had fled.

"My friends," the dragon said in a gentler tone, "I am still here though in a different form. You have nothing to fear from me."

And they believed her. On that day, the company of Thorin Oakenshield gained a most formidable ally.


	3. Chapter 3

_Guardian of the Mountain_

Disclaimer: I do not own either "The Hobbit" or "Avatar: The Last Airbender" but the wonderful lady firebender in the story is my precious.

NOTE: And here's the finale. Short and sweet. I hope this was an enjoyable alternative ending. It certainly a fascinating idea to pursue. Do let me know if you preferred it to the original. I have other ideas about Leminkaiya but this is the only one I've chosen to write. (But send me a message if you're interested.)

Thank you for reading!

**PART III**

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Events had only began to settle down in the mountain when Bard returned and with him came Gandalf. He had arrived in Lake-town not long ago and had been meaning to follow the dwarves in the mountain. Bard had apprised the wizard of all that had taken place, particularly the fall of Smaug, and now Gandalf was eager to help his friends.

All were glad to see him and Gandalf had barely set foot in the mountain before he was being bombarded with animated explanations of recent events. Bard listened with growing astonishment as the dwarves shared what had happened with him. They led the bowman and the wizard to the vast chamber where Bilbo and Thorin were calmly conversing with the newly-transformed dragon.

"Gandalf, what a pleasure to see you!" Ainara greeted warmly, "We weren't expecting you though I doubt you ever expected to see me in such a state!"

The wizard stared for a few moments before breaking into a smile.

"You certainly are full of surprises," Gandalf replied good-naturedly. They easily began an animated discussion on what might have led to this unexpected turn of events.

"You wouldn't happen to have an explanation for this, would you?" Ainara asked hopefully, "I'm not completely comfortable about being ignorant of my own circumstances."

"I'm afraid that, as far as I am aware, your case is completely unprecedented in Middle-earth," the wizard replied seriously, "and I do not think this has ever happened in your world either."

"Not even in stories," Ainara agreed, "but there are always forced beyond our understanding. And when I think about it, perhaps the legend that the person who defeats a dragon earns the title 'dragon' might have been taken literally here."

"Perhaps you are a skin-changer, like Beorn," Thorin suggested but Gandalf shook his head.

"We can consult Beorn on the matter when we have the chance," the wizard said, "but no one among his kind has ever been able to turn into a dragon."

"And I do not think I will be able to change back," Ainara said sadly, "I've already tried and though I can't explain it, I can feel that I am meant to stay in this form."

The dragon bowed her head with a sigh and all of them knew instantly that she would be nothing like Smaug, who had never made a gesture of humility in his long life.

"But I suppose I must not complain," Ainara remarked with some cheerfulness, "after all, in this form I will be better able to protect all my friends."

At this everyone looked at her with gratitude and admiration. In spite of all her newly acquired power, her concern still was the welfare of others. Gandalf smiled at her proudly.

"Truly there never has been a dragon like you in this world," the wizard declared, "for the great serpents of old had always been selfish, greedy, vicious beasts with no regard for the lives of others. But you are not like them at all. You do not even resemble them since you look more like a dragon from your land. You have been born out of a desire to protect those weaker than you, and thus, I believe your destiny will be greater than that of any other dragon who ever lived in this world."

"Thank you for your kind words, my dear friend," Ainara replied earnestly, moved by the wizard's speech.

"He has but spoken the truth," Thorin told her, "you have always been a true friend to all of us and we have no reason to doubt you now. I never thought I would ever fight alongside a dragon, but with you, it would be an honor."

He made a respectful bow to her and the rest of the dwarves followed suit. She returned the gesture gladly. Once this was done, a cheer broke out among the company.

"But we are very lucky, indeed," Bilbo remarked warmly, "for how many of us can count a might dragon among our friends?"

"Not many, Master Baggins, not many at all," Thorin agreed with a smile.

Now, that one trial had been overcome, they were ready to face what came next. And Gandalf began to explain the situation beyond the mountain and the great battle that was about to commence. The company listened attentively and after some discussion, a decision was reached.

"Now, I believe we have a battle to fight," Ainara said eagerly, "And I think I know the fastest way we can join our allies."

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And so it was that during the Battle of the Five Armies, an unexpected ally arrived to turn the tide.

In the midst of the struggle, all soldiers looked up in awe to see the figure of a dragon approaching from the mountain. Many cried that it was Smaug returned from the dead but they were quickly reminded that Smaug's corpse lay rotting near the shores of the lake. They realized that this was a different and more fearsome foe.

The new dragon flew over the battlefield and on her back rode the company of Thorin Oakenshield, Gandalf the Grey, and Bard the Bowman. The dragon unleashed her fury on the hosts of goblins and wargs, slaying many with the first attack and causing the rest to flee in terror. She grabbed many frightened orcs with her sharp claws as she landed and allowed her passengers to join the fray.

"To me! To me! Elves and Men! To me! O my kinsfolk!" cried Thorin as he jumped off the dragon and many rallied to his side in spite of their apprehension about the dragon.

"This is the mighty Ainara and she is here to fight for our cause!" the dwarf king declared, inspiring more confidence in the others to join them.

"I am the dragonslayer turned dragon," Ainara proclaimed in a voice that shook the valley, "I am a proud member of the company of Thorin Oakenshield and a friend of Gandalf the Grey and of Bard of Laketown. If you mean them harm, I shall show you no mercy!"

And to prove her sincerity, the dragon spouted large flames into the armies of goblins and orcs. They screamed in agony as they burned and none dared challenge her. Those who remained were easily chased and taken down by Thorin's company and their allies.

Many a foul orc and goblin fell that day while the ranks of dwarves, men, and elves suffered very few casualties. None had anticipated the arrival of the dragon and the significant battle that would have lasted for many days ended before any great losses could be endured. The armies of darkness were banished from the land and once more peace returned to the mountain and the realms that surrounded it.

Ainara was henceforth named Guardian of the Mountain and chose to remain with Thorin Oakenshield as he and his company rebuilt Erebor. The malice of Smaug and the curse of the treasure was overpowered by the presence of the new dragon and thus many misfortunes were prevented. Until the end of her days, Ainara remained on good terms with the people of Lake-town and she was always close friend to Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf the Grey.

The King under the Mountain reigned for the next fifty years, restoring honor and glory to his kingdom, and bringing peace and prosperity to the surrounding lands. It is said that on the day Thorin Oakenshield passed to the land of his fathers, his loyal friend, the dragon Ainara, lay down and closed her eyes for the last time. The kingdom remained secure, never again troubled by another fearsome foe.

-FIN-


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